CitySceneKC
Regional Skate Park, Artworks, Could ‘Enhance’ New Buck O’Neil Bridge
By Kevin Collison Creating a regional skate park beneath the approach ramps to the new Buck O’Neil Bridge is among the ideas in a report prepared by a group tasked to enliven what’s now a bland infrastructure project. Work is well underway on the $220 million replacement span that will carry US 169 traffic over…
River Bluff Brewing Opening Soon at Second and Main
(Editor’s note: River Bluff Brewing will officially open March 5) By Kevin Collison River Bluff Brewing, the latest addition to the greater downtown microbrewery scene, expects to open in mid-February on a cozy street near the Town of Kansas Bridge at the foot of Main. “We feel like with Second Street, we’re in the heart…
Boutique Hotel Proposed for Historic Workhouse Castle on Vine
By Kevin Collison The ruined former City Workhouse Castle built in 1897 to incarcerate petty criminals and vagrants would accommodate a far more upscale clientele as a boutique hotel in a new redevelopment proposal. The massive limestone curiosity at 2001 Vine St. near the 18th & Vine Jazz District and 23 acres of nearby property…
Pembroke Ward Parkway Campus Completes $52M Expansion
By Kevin Collison Pembroke Hill has completed a $52 million expansion of its Ward Parkway Campus that includes a new athletic center and a dining hall illuminated by windows featuring striking sculptural screens. The new 53,000 square-foot Bellis Athletic Center replaces the aging Pierson gymnasium and expands the private school’s ability to host athletic and…
Crescendo Project to Add Affordable Housing Near Downtown
By Kevin Collison A $10.6 million development plan that would add 39 affordable apartments to the Wendell Phillips neighborhood is being planned by the same developer who has built similar projects near downtown. Brinshore Development is teaming with the Urban Neighborhood Initiative on what’s called the UNI Crescendo project. It calls for 10 townhome-style apartment…
Omaha Going Big on Downtown with New Skyscraper, Streetcar Line
(Editor’s note: This article about two major developments announced Wednesday in Omaha is being published to inform CityScene readers about what other regional cities are doing to revitalize their greater downtowns. The last office tower built in downtown Kansas City was the 18-story H&R Block headquarters in 2006. The 30-story 1201 Walnut building opened in…
Imagine KC Strategic Plan Seeks More ‘Equitable Downtown’
By Kevin Collison A strategic plan that encompasses neighborhoods more than a mile from the skyscrapers of its central business district and envisions downtown as an economic catalyst for that larger area was rolled out Tuesday by the Downtown Council. The new Imagine Downtown KC 2030 Strategic Plan was two years in the making and seeks…
Decking South Loop Tops Downtown Improvement Priority List in Survey
By Kevin Collison The proposed decking of the South Loop freeway with a park was the most popular of three potential big downtown improvements being discussed these days, according to CityScene readers responding to an informal survey. More than 40 people offered their opinions on Facebook and Twitter last week about how they would prioritize…
Mac’s Big Midtown Project Dead After Council Rejects Funding
By Kevin Collison A $100 million proposal that would have added 385 apartments next to the planned streetcar stop at Main and Armour is dead after the City Council rejected funding considered key to including affordable housing. Mac Properties had proposed renovating the US Bank building at Main and Armour and the nearby New Yorker…
Final Barney Allis Plaza Rebuild Plan Has $112.4M Price Tag
By Kevin Collison Almost three years after launching its search, the city now has solid design plan and price tag for reviving the crumbling Barney Allis Plaza, but appears to be no closer to figuring out how to pay for it. At a briefing to a Council committee Wednesday, consultants said the Plaza built in…